Doha Islamic Youth Forum concludes

The Doha Islamic Youth Forum concluded yesterday. Youth delegations from 56 countries from Muslim nations participated, including 20 delegates from the State of Qatar.
The closing ceremony was attended by HE Minister of Culture and Sports, Salah bin Ghanem bin Nasser al-Ali, and Islamic Conference Youth Forum’s new president Taha Ayhan, as well as a number of officials from the Ministry of Culture and Sports.
Participants made a number of recommendations related to the forum’s themes.
They called for strengthening the fight against corruption within civil society institutions by conducting media campaigns in social media and establishing youth oversight bodies to promote a culture of integrity, transparency and combating corruption.
They also called for establishing national and local youth-led observatories to promote transparency and integrity in the management of public affairs, as well as stressing the importance of supporting youth initiatives in the areas of good governance and transparency within youth institutions.
The participants also called for the establishment of training centres for the development of youth skills in the field of community-based youth initiatives, the establishment of a women’s association for the rehabilitation and training of women to participate in the management of public affairs, the launch of national consultations on the legislative framework for newly graduated youth and the entry into the labour market, as well as the establishment of follow-up committees to evaluate plans and strategies for youth initiatives.
Another recommendation made by the participants was to establish a social communication technology that integrates the digital platforms under the supervision of the United Nations, and is used to raise funds and support charitable and voluntary campaigns across the Islamic world and to develop awareness programmes to rationalise the use of social media with the participation of specialists and media professionals; and develop training programmes to educate on the values of citizenship and belonging and support social responsibility through social networking platforms, support for gender equality and work to empower women in various fields on social networking platforms.
Director of Youth Affairs Department at the Ministry of Culture and Sports Hussein Rashid al-Kubaisi praised the participants for the active role they played in enriching the forum.
He noted that the event represented an opportunity for youth to get to share their views on different issues. It also helped promote a culture of good governance and transparency, he added.
President Ayhan said during the closing ceremony that this is a historic day of youth work in the Islamic world, where the Doha Islamic Youth Forum and the Ministry of Culture and Sports of Qatar have joined forces to provide a message to the world’s youth that contribute to the development of Islamic societies.
He pointed out that one of the most important priorities of the forum through its activities with member states is to defend the interests of young people, support sustainable development, and develop strategies, programmes and projects that can promote education, promote the moral values of younger generation and renounce violence and extremism, as well as promoting entrepreneurship.
Ayhan expressed happiness at the excellent diplomatic emulation presented by the youth during the forum, stressing that they presented a simulation of the meeting of foreign ministers in the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, expressing his confidence in promising diplomats in the future, calling on participants to transfer their experiences during the forum to their countries.
Ayhan pointed out that the choice of the State of Qatar for this role comes as it has creative experiences in this field and a message of development for young people which can be inspiring to other countries.
The ceremony witnessed documentary films show, covering the most important youth issues and their aspirations in the Islamic world, and other documentary on culture in Qatar and a third summarising the work of the forum.